Again With The Christmas Tree Tax!

From today's Sunday pops:

The Heritage Foundation reports that a Christmas tree tax has made its way back into the abomination that is the farm bill. A new tax of up to 20 cents per fresh-cut tree will pay for a federal Christmas Tree Promotion Board, whose goal will be “to enhance the image of Christmas trees and the Christmas tree industry in the United States.” Count us among those shocked to learn that Christmas trees have an image problem.[Bolding in original.]

As always, with our friends on the braintrust, what they leave out tells us almost as much as what they put in.  For example, they don't bother telling you in which chamber (the Democratically controlled Senate or the GOP controlled House) this is taking place.

Here's a hint: The "abomination that is the farm bill" is coming from the Republican-controlled House.  Specifically the House Agriculture Committee.

In fact, it even says so at the Scaife-funded Heritage Foundation:

It’s never too early for Washington, D.C., politicians to dampen the holiday spirit. The House Agriculture Committee approved an amendment to its farm bill that would lift the stay blocking implementation of President Obama’s Christmas tree tax.

In fact, it's the very first sentence of the piece.  That would mean that the Republican-controlled House is hating on the Christians and their trees, right?

Well, why didn't they just say so?

Perhaps they should ask Representative Glenn Thompson.  He's a Pennsylvanian and he's on the Agriculture Committee.

We've written about this before and they still get it wrong.  For instance, it's not a "tax" since the money raised does NOT go to the guv'ment at all, but goes directly to that promotion board.

And about that promotion board: The braintrust gets it wrong when describes it as "a federal...Board."  By the way they write it, they must want you to think it's made up of guv'ment bureaucrats, right?

Wrong.  From the Federal Register:

This rule establishes an industry-funded promotion, research, and information program for fresh cut Christmas trees. The Christmas Tree Promotion, Research, and Information Order (Order) is authorized under the Commodity Promotion, Research, and Information Act of 1996 (1996 Act). The Order will establish a national Christmas Tree Promotion Board (Board) comprised of 11 producers and one importer.

Industry-funded board made up of 12 members of the industry and yet, to these folks it's turned into Obama's Christmas Tree tax.

Sheesh, how silly is this?